Streetrats
by EdgyFirebender
Summary: A series of oneshots revolving around Mako and Bolin's life on the streets.
1. Nightmare

Summary- Mako suffers with regular nightmares after the death of his parents. Bolin learns the truth.

 _Fire. Raging red flames danced in his vision. Thick clouds of black smoke filling the air, it travelled up his nostrils and he choked, coughing violently. He was scared. Terrified. He felt like crying. The tension in his chest was almost unbearable as he pressed through the black dragons of smoke, desperately trying to find his parents._

 _He'd seen them go off, telling him that they'd only be a minute. To be a good boy and take care of his brother. He should have followed them. He should have followed._

 _"Daddy!" He cried out, coughing as the smoke invaded his lungs, filling his chest. The fear was growing stronger now, he could feel tears leaking from his eyes. He was so scared._

 _He pressed on further. He could hear something. It sounded like crying. "Daddy?" He tested. A loud cough. He followed the noise. He shattered as he saw them. His mother was blackened, burnt to a crisp, unrecognisable. His father, equally burnt and blistering holding her against him. There was blood on the ground. Up the walls. He choked on his own bile._

 _His fathers dying eyes came to rest on him, opened his mouth but coughed blood._

 _His amber irises burned with the image. His father stilled. Dead. He sobbed._

Mako awoke in tears, the image of his parents in front of his eyes. He gasped, choking on air, clutching at the red scarf around his neck. Feeling the soft fabric beneath his fingers. Willing himself desperately to calm down. _You'll wake Bolin_. He couldn't. The image wouldn't go away. The bodies of his parents. He could have done something. Why didn't he do something? He placed a fist in his mouth to muffle the noises, he didn't want to wake Bolin. It was difficult to get him to sleep in the first place. Mako didn't want them both to be sleepless.

He rubbed at his shadow-rimmed eyes with his free hand, wiping the tears off his face in desperation. At his side, Bolin stirred. Mako froze, holding back the whimper in his throat.

Bright green eyes stared curiously up at him, "Mako? Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Mako sniffed wiping his nose on his sleeve, "I had a bad dream, go back to sleep."

Bolin's curiosity only spiked. "What was it about?"

"You don't need to know. Go back to sleep."

Bolin frowned. "Daddy said that bad dreams go away once you tell someone."

Mako bit back another sob. "D-daddy isn't here now."

"I know." Bolin said softly, "You said he and mummy were on vacation, right?"

Mako choked on his tears, shaking his head, chest tightening in guilt from the lies he had spewed. "They're not coming back Bolin."

"What?"

"They're not- mummy and daddy- they're not-" He cut himself off as he began to cry again. Bolin sat up, wrapping an arm round him, nuzzling into his side.

"Why are you so sad Mako?" He asked innocently.

"Mummy and daddy aren't coming back!" He cried, Bolin's eyes widened at the statement. "They aren't coming back, ever, they can't come back Bolin!"

"Why?" Bolin was starting to tear up, his lower lip trembling.

"They're dead. They're not coming back. They won't come back."

Bolin fell silent, although Mako could feel his hot tears through the fabric of his shirt. Bolin's fingers pulling at the scarf round his neck, as he began to sob loudly. Mako regretted telling him. "Mako, I want mummy and daddy!"

Mako swallowed his own tears. Pulling Bolin closer to him, whispering words of affection into his ear, rocking him gently. The way their mother used to do to lull him to sleep. Their mother was gone and so was their father. It was just them.

Bolin drifted into silence and Mako knew he had finally fallen asleep. He was glad. He wanted Bolin to sleep, to not worry about anything. Bolin knew now though, he'd told him. It was for the better, right? He had to know at some point. Death was something you had to accept.

Mako didn't sleep that night. Or that night after, or the night after that. Just like he hadn't slept the nights before. The nightmare kept haunting him, reminding him that it was just them now. Him and Bolin. Mako would make sure Bolin wouldn't be harmed, he wouldn't let him end up like their parents. Bolin was all he had left. And Mako would do anything to make sure he was safe. And happy. It would be hard, but he could do it. He had to. He'd start by not letting the nightmare bother him anymore. The more he got upset, the worse it would be right? He had to be strong. He had to be strong for Bolin.

 **AN** : Well this is the first out of a series one-shots I have planned for this fic. I mainly wanted to explore their life on the streets together, growing up. Because I feel that's something that could have been explored a bit more in canon.

This one is set roughly a couple of weeks after Bolin and Mako became orphans. Bless them.

I've got more planned for down the line, so I'll hopefully update soon.

Reviews aren't necessary but they help me feel motivated and I can't help but smile every-time I read one, so if you enjoy, please drop a review so I know you liked this and would potentially like to see more down the line.

Enjoy!


	2. Triple Threat Triad

Summary- Mako meets the Triple Threat Triad for the first time.

Mako ran as fast as his legs could carry him, the purse of yuans he'd just stolen jingling at his side. He needed to get back to Bolin, quickly, before anyone could notice the coin was missing. He rounded a corner, darting into an alleyway, to pause and catch his breath, count the money, see just how long it would last them. He froze. Someone was with him, he turned, to face a group of roughly six people, a gang.

His eyes widened and he backed away, holding the money protectively against him. He didn't want any trouble. He just wanted to get back. Assure his brother's safety. Buy food.

"Hey kid," One of the gang members greeted, a scrawny looking teenager but still stood a good foot taller than him. He had an unpleasant smirk on his face, "Fancy sharing some of that coin with us?"

Mako pressed further back, eyes narrowing. "Get your own." He growled.

"Now, now, that's not fair." Another boy piped up, he looked older, had a muscular physique. Dangerous green eyes narrowed into slits, "What's a kid like you gonna do with all that money, huh?" He approached aggressively and Mako held his position, shifting into a defensive stance.

"I need it."

The first teen laughed, "Yeah sure. Well here's the deal, we need it more. You hand it over and we won't send you home crying to mommy."

They wanted a fight. Mako felt his nerves began to fizzle. He could fight them, he was a good bender. He could probably manage to escape too. But there were six of them, and one of him. He didn't like his odds.

"You're not feeling it?" The muscular boy asked, cracking his knuckles. "Fine by me."

A punch missed his head and Mako ducked, swerving to the side, launching fire at the scrawny boy.

"No fair, he's a bender!" One of the boys cried out, Mako sent a fist of flame in his direction and the boy narrowly jumped back, singeing the edges of his shirt.

"So?" The muscle boy stated, "We can take 'em."

He charged and Mako was unable to dodge away from his hulking physique, he was thrown violently against the wall of the alleyway, the boys hand wrapped around his throat. He struggled in his grip, clawing at the hand that held his throat, letting flames lick at it, searing the flesh. He was dropped and the boy cursed.

"Little shit! What the fuck are you guys doing? Get him!"

Mako fought. He fought until he grew tired until his fire started to fizzle out. He'd downed four, two remained. The muscular guy and an armed lackey. Mako had been careful to avoid him up until this point, he wasn't eager to take on someone with a weapon. They advanced on him and he attacked with the little energy he had left, pressing his back against the wall. His eyes widening in horror as he realised there was no way he'd win. "Get away from me!" He spat at them. Although his words did little to stir the advances.

He was thrust up against the wall again and barely had any time to register a searing hot pain in his side before the two boys collapsed into a pile at his feet. His chest heaved as the initial panic subsided, replaced with the feeling of white hot agony. His eyes burned and he hissed, placing a hand on the injured area, feeling warm blood begin to pool between his fingers. He could feel panic again. He was going to die. He'd never come back to Bolin. Bolin was going to be alone, to fend for himself. He could feel tears start to make their way down his face.

"You okay kid? You handled yourself pretty good, I'm impressed." Mako cast his blurry gaze upward at the man who had spoken. He was clearly of water tribe decent, a concerned expression on his face. "Aww shit, they managed to get ya, huh? I ain't much good at healing, but I'll see what I can do, stay still."

Mako nodded weakly and allowed the man to do his work, feeling the soothing water begin to ease the pain. He was horribly scared, not for his own life but his brothers'. Bolin was expecting him back, he _needed_ to get back. He let out a sharp cry as he realised he was being moved.

"Sorry! Ain't much else I can do for you here, so I'm gonna get you back. Patch you up, see if I can get the guys to help."

Mako had no idea who 'the guys' were, but he could barely protest. The sudden movement sparking a new wave of discomfort in his body.

"That's the thing with non-benders, they think that since they ain't got no bending, they got the right to use weapons and shit. At least bending doesn't kill people, most of the time." The man looked down at him, "Name's Shin by the way. You're pretty young, how old are you kid?

Mako thought for a moment. Him and Bolin had been out on the streets for about two winters now. Must have been roughly two years. "Ten." He replied through grit teeth.

Shin's eyes widened. "Jeez. You got a home, parents?"

"No."

"Food?"

"They took my food money." Mako stated bitterly. Shin frowned.

"Well, you were pretty good out there. Should be able to snag you a job, could earn you a few extra coin." Shin spoke, a smile passing along his face, "I'll bring it up with the guys when we get back, not long now."

Mako must have lost consciousness sometime on the way back. When he woke up, he was lying down on a couch, bandage wrapped around his torso, blanket over his legs. Shin and a couple of other people were situated by the wall, talking in hushed whispers.

Shin's eyes lit up at realisation that he was awake. "Hey, he's up! How ya doing kid? I don't think I even know your name."

Mako sat up, leaning against the armrest, groaning slightly as the movement pulled on his injury. "It's Mako." He said hesitantly.

Shin nodded, "Well I spoke to the guys and Zolt here thinks it'd be reasonable to offer you a bit of work, if you're interested."

Mako thought about it for a moment. It was the least he could do after this man had just saved his life. Plus he was in desperate need of money after being robbed of it. Bolin was probably starving. Bolin. He'd probably be worried sick.

Mako swung his legs over the edge of the couch in lightning speed, he didn't care about the sudden pain. He needed to get back to his brother, Bolin needed him. Shin placed a hand on his shoulder, pushing him back down. "Jeez kid, you need rest. Why the sudden rush?"

Mako looked between him and the door, "My brother- Bolin- he's alone."

The man which Shin had introduced as Zolt pushed Shin aside, facing Mako. "You got a brother?"

Mako nodded. "He's alone- he needs food, I need to get back."

Zolt nodded in understanding. Glancing over his shoulder at one of the other men, "Ping, would you be able to fetch Mako's brother and bring him here?" He turned back to Mako. "What's your brother look like then?"

Mako swallowed, unsure of whether he should tell or not. They seemed like they meant well. But there was definitely something fishy about them, something Mako couldn't really trust. But he needed to know Bolin was alright. "He's small, big green eyes, got a green shirt on."

Zolt nodded. "You got that Ping? Go get the boy's brother." The man named Ping left quickly, shutting the door behind him. "Now you just rest up alright? Take it easy. I don't like seeing a kid hurt at the best of times." Zolt left the room, leaving Mako alone with Shin, who grinned at him.

"I think you're gonna fit in pretty nicely, been a while since we had fresh meat around." Shin said.

Mako cast his gaze down to the ground. He still didn't trust these people. Had he done the right thing telling them about Bolin? What kind of work did they even want him to do? He frowned to himself. It didn't matter. As long as Bolin came in safe and there was a good source of money to provide for him, it didn't matter. He'd do any kind of work for these guys as long as it meant Bolin would be well looked after. Maybe things were starting to look up.

AN: This one is a bit longer than the last one, which is good. The more content the better, right?

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this update and I hope to update again soon with another chapter.

It isn't necessary to leave a review, but they keep me motivated and that helps me work faster. Not to mention, it leaves a smile on my face every time I get a new one. So if you enjoyed this, please drop a review just so I can know your thoughts and know that you'd like to see more down the line.

Enjoy!


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